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When 17th century Russians built 20-m-high ice slides for their amusement, they had no idea what they were pioneering. But those early prototypes—carrying squealing thrill seekers on wooden sleds for several hundred feet—were an inspiration to 20th century engineers, and the result was the roller coaster. The U.S. once led the roller coaster field, but as new challengers (like Denmark's Vild-Svinet) have shown, no country has a monopoly on thrills. Here are some of our favorites, from Ohio to Taichung.

MILLENNIUM FORCE
Ohio
This isn't the world's fastest ride anymore, but it may still be the scariest. The agonizingly slow crawl to the apex, overlooking Lake Erie, will have you begging for the 149-km/h drop.

LEAP THE DIPS
Pennsylvania
Located in Lakemont Park, Altoona, Leap the Dips was built in 1902. It's the oldest roller coaster in existence, and a full restoration in 1999 should keep it in good health for many years to come. Cars trot along this centenarian at a stately 16 km/h.

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KINGDA KA
New Jersey
This brand-new superstar from the U.S. theme park chain Six Flags claimed the roller coaster triple crown when it opened earlier this year, notching up the fastest speed (205 km/h), the tallest ride (139 m), and the biggest drop (127 m). Numbers don't lie.

GRAVITY MAX
Taichung, Taiwan
Located in the Discovery World theme park, Gravity Max is the world's only "tilt coaster." That means it's not just the cars that move. The track does, too, tilting at a terrifying 88-degree angle as screaming riders hurtle through space.

CYCLONE
New York
A 1927 creation on New York's Coney Island, this ride was named a U.S. National Historic Landmark in 1991. It's the world's most copied roller coaster, with seven replicas operating in the U.S., Europe and Japan.

THE ULTIMATE
Ripon, Britain
If you're a glutton for punishment, you'll enjoy the Ultimate, one of the world's longest coasters. Built in 1991, it offers a 6-min. ride (epic by coaster standards) through 2.27 km of countryside, albeit at a relatively genteel top speed of 80 km/h.

COASTER CULTURE
• Can't get enough of coasters, or think you can do better than the engineers? Then try Atari's Roller Coaster Tycoon 3 (rollercoastertycoon.com), a computer game that lets you simulate your own thrill rides.
• For the true aficionado, Roller Coaster Database (rcdb.com) provides listings, news and statistics on about 1,800 coasters around the world.

• Keane Shum
• Check out some of the world's most superlative thrill rides